Handheld devices such as personal digital assistants (PDA), pagers, hand-held computers, cellular phones, and so forth are inherently small and have limited space for user interface and operation. These devices have greatly expanded the functions and operations available for the user. Additional features include multi-directional control devices such as dial wheels, scroll balls, slide switches, etc. Multi-direction control devices may provide improved navigation through the multiple functions performed by an electronic device, such as a PDA or handheld computer, by limiting the number of switches needed, and providing various capabilities at fingertip control. However, when these devices are placed in a protective case, through-case controls are generally not available for operating these multi-directional control devices.